FLASHBACK: How Obasanjo Humiliated Buhari’s New PSC Appointee In Lagos

President Muhammadu Buhari’s new appointee to the office of the Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC), Musiliu Smith, was once disgraced by former President Olusegun Obasanjo at an event in Lagos.

Smith, whose appointment by President Buhari was announced by Senate President Bukola Saraki on Thursday, was also once sacked by Obasanjo in March 2002 as the Inspector General of Police.

The former president retired Smith after the Nigerian Union of Policeman embarked on a strike in February 2002.

Fifteen years after disengaging him as Police IG, Obasanjo, at an event where Smith was named special guest of honour in 2017, humiliated the former IGP for allegedly being out of touch with new developments.

The former president embarrassed the former IGP at the maiden biannual special training and capacity building programme organised by the assistant inspector-general of police (AIG) in charge of Zone II.

At the event with Smith in attendance as a special guest, Obasanjo said: “Police must be aware and in touch with new developments in other parts of the globe. I can see my former IGP Musiliu Smith is completely out of date to give lecture on police duty. He has experience to share with you, but not on modern way of doing things. I don’t even know how digital you (Smith) are.”

Mr Smith’s new appointment as PSC’s chairman ends former IGP, Mike Okiro’s five years headship of the Commission. Okiro had manned the PSC since 2013 following his nomination by former President Goodluck Jonathan.